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Chargers’ O-line let Rivers down

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There’s an old Japanese proverb that goes “fall seven times, get up eight.”

It is meant to inspire resilience, perseverance, and good ol’ fashioned toughness.

But if the creator of that quote had watched the Chargers-Chiefs game Sunday, he may have tweaked the wording a bit.

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Perhaps something like “fall seven times...then for the love of God, find someone who can block for you.”

Philip Rivers endured seven sacks in San Diego’s 19-7 loss to Kansas City. His offensive line was like a wooden fence trying to stop a Hummer.

Every drop back was rushed, every pass play was hurried. Toward the end of the game, you figure a wince accompanied his every throw.

Not since 2010 has a team sacked Rivers as often as the Chiefs did Sunday. Moan about injured running backs or receivers all you want, but the absent protection was the key ingredient in the Chargers’ defeat.

Simply put: Rivers had no time to throw. And now, with no postseason in their future, the Chargers have all the time in the world.

“The biggest pain in my mind right now is that we didn’t give him (Rivers) a chance to do what he was capable of doing today,” said center Trevor Robinson, the fifth Charger to start at that position this year. “It’s all of us. We didn’t get it done.”

It would be one thing if this were a fluke performance from an otherwise effective offensive front. Perhaps then, as disappointed as the Chargers would be about their season ending, they could at least feel optimistic about next year’s prospects.

But what took place against the Chiefs was an amplified example of something that has been clear for months now: This offensive line just isn’t very good.

Sunday, the subpar pass-blocking was most prominently displayed, but it’s not like San Diego hasn’t struggled with the run, too. Heading into the Chiefs game, the Chargers averaged 3.36 yards per rush — good for second-to-last in the league.

Yes, there have been injuries, and that’s a truth that cannot be ignored. But here’s the question: Do you see the line getting better any time soon?

Longtime center Nick Hardwick plans to retire. Left tackle King Dunlap — the one consistent bright spot on the O-line this year — is a free agent with injury history. Right tackle D.J. Fluker didn’t progress the way people expected him to, while guards Johnnie Troutman and Chad Rinehart are a long way from being difference makers.

Remember the 2012 offseason, when shoring up the offensive line was the front office’s top priority? Well, are the Chargers not in the exact same position now?

Seems so, because those four quarters in Arrowhead Stadium were unacceptable.

At one point, Rivers was sacked six times in a span of 13 drop backs. Justin Houston had four sacks by himself — pushing his season total to an NFL-leading 22.0.

And the Chiefs’ pass-rush clearly affected the Chargers’ play-calling, as handoffs to Donald Brown became a necessary alternative within their offense.

Philip, was there anything the Chiefs were doing upfront that the caused the line to have so much trouble?

Answered Rivers: “You watched it.”

To be fair, Rivers was meh when the Chargers needed magic. He finished the game with 291 yards and two interceptions on 20 of 34 passing.

The legendary quarterbacks in this league overcome inferior surroundings. Sunday, Philip was bound by them.

Still, there’s a reason that the linemen’s corner of the Chargers’ locker room was particularly solemn Sunday. Fluker declined to be interviewed, as did Dunlap, who offered a simple “It’s over.”

They know, as San Diego coach Mike McCoy said after the game, that “you have to win in the trenches.”

The Chargers didn’t win in the trenches Sunday. They just dug themselves a ditch.

Kansas City Chiefs 19, San Diego Chargers 7

Arrowhead Stadium, 12/28/2014

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